JUST GOT HOME---Review 5/15-22

[JeffersonSea]

Thanks for your review, and for providing a slightly different point of view, especially for this trip. On previous cruises, we seemed to enjoy our free, lazy time the most. The past two, we either stayed onboard for a port day, or did a very early excursion on our own that had us back on board by noon at the latest. And sitting by the pool with just a few others, and a drink or 3, was one of the best parts of the trip.

 

We loved the Oasis, and would definitely do it again, but I think many people get very excited (like we did) about all the entertainment, sports and dining options on board, and over-book themselves. (again, like we did)

 

One of the only disappointments on our trip was that we felt a little rushed and "busy" every day. A show here, dinner there, another activity here....and you sometimes can feel like your whole day is jam packed. Kudos to RC for having so many various options available for everyone, but just a little tip - leave some "me time" when you go. Don't feel like you have to book a different restaurant every night or a show every night.

 

The ship is so beautiful to just hang out in and wander around, between the neighborhoods and the sights, make sure you leave time to just relax!

[cathyp1216]

Sounds like a perfect vacation to me. Just like ours. We are going on the Oasis in September. Can't wait!

[Stags14]

I have a question for you (or anyone who has traveled on the oasis as well as the liberty/freedom). I'm thinking about a trip on the Oasis, but I'm wondering if it's REALLY worth it? Using everything to gauge; entertainment, space, crowdedness, price, ports, crew, etc... do you think this ship is that much better than the Liberty? I guess what I'm really asking is there anyone out there who's saying to themselves "glad i tried that boat, it was great.. but I think next time I'll go back to the Freedom class.."?

[sailingawaysoon]

Thanks for the review. I really enjoyed reading it. It sounds like you had a wonderful time all in all. It's nice to hear that there are so many options of less crowded places to eat that are included in our fare. Can't wait for our Labor Day cruise on the Oasis.

[janetz]

Warning: BF and I are probably the most boring cruisers in the world. We don't do much activities or excursion-wise. So that won't really be in this review. It's just my general impressions after a week on an amazing ship. It wasn't perfect, but even the "complaints" are mild. Also, I may have some of the nights wrong about shows and such--I tend to lose track of days on vacation!

 

Friday Flew into FLL late, and stayed at Sleep Inn. Free shuttle to airport and to port and cheap price were reasons for picking it. It was just fine. Free breakfast. Walgreens next door to stock up on a few last minute things.

 

SaturdayWanted 11am shuttle, got it at 10:45, had to pick up some ladies at FLL, then at pier at 11:15. Other than usual chaos of people leaving previous cruise, very orderly. Separate entrance for suites, then divided in two groups by deck number. My security agent almost gave me a heart attack by joking that I was a week early! They were already boarding, so didn't have to wait in Platinum area. Got on board by 11:30. So easy! They give you a fold-up map and a little booklet, which was really helpful.

 

Wow is all I can say about how we felt when we walked in. WOW! Amazing.

 

Went up to sports deck b/c thought you had to sign up for zipline. Touch screens said it opened at 11:30, so we got up there, and it was closed. So we got DOD at the Mast Bar, and people started lining up. At about 11:50, staff came up to organize the line. The ladies in front of me were in a tizzy because it turned out that now, instead of reserving a time for the zipline, it's first come, first served. That was kind of annoying, since I had read on here that you reserve a time, but the staff said there had been numerous complaints by passengers about the reserving process, so they have now changed it. So just a head's up if you plan to do it. (I never ended up doing it b/c the lines were always long, but no biggie). Still had my DOD in hand and we headed to the WJ.

 

Had heard WJ was pretty small and it was. The food in there was really good, but they clearly are trying to steer people elsewhere. The set up of the dessert station made no sense, and people were picking food up with their fingers, but the service was great, and we ate lunch there a few times and dinner twice. Never ate breakfast there.

 

Cabin opened at 1 and it was great. Kind of small, but great storage. One minor thing--in the shower, the "shelf" for your toiletries was not that well designed. Basically anything you want to put on it kept slipping through and falling into the shower. Poor BF had to keep picking up my stuff! Really annoying. But otherwise, the bathroom was great. We were given shampoo, conditioner, body wash and lotion, along with regular soap, which I thought was a really nice touch. Don't know if everyone had that so I'd like to know about that.

 

Our room steward was the best we've ever had. She was wonderful.

 

We left at 8:00pm that night, as they were doing maintenance that could only be done in the US. I think it's for the lifeboats.

 

Dinner on the first night in the MDR. It was fine, but not great. We both had Vidalia Onion Tart (yum!), I had pork and BF had fish, then I had pot de creme (i.e. chocolate mousse) and BF had some weird strawberry merengue thing. Waiter was fine, but not great. We only ate there the first night. We had decided not to do formal nights anyway, but based on the menus we'd seen and all the other options, we just didn't feel like it was worth going to.

 

Sunday First day at sea. Formal night. Breakfast from the Cafe Promenade--donuts, danishes, croissants. We did this every day. We randomly woke up super early, so we were able to get a cabana in the Solarium. Wonderful! Lots of chair hogs, but the deck patrol was out in full force. The cabana unfortunately got really hot with the top up after a while, and since I can't really be in the sun that much, we let someone else have it and went to the sports pool and hung out under shade for a while. We then went to the Park Cafe for one of many roast beef sandwiches. Better than advertised! I had the turkey panini, and it was great. Make your own salad was really good too. Then back to cabin to nap, and then a snack at Cafe Promenade. We had the double chocolate brownies and toffee cookies. Wow. Amazing again! We had to have one of each every day! Room service for dinner. I had the honey stung chicken w/sweet potato fries, which was really good. BF had steak sandwich, which was also really good.

 

We then were just walking around, and realized Oasis of Dreams was starting at Aqua Theatre, so we sat at Boardwalk Bar and watched from there. They show everything on the big screens, so you miss some of it, but it was enough. Hairspray was that night in Opal Theatre. Fantastic! Apparently it was the last show by Cast 1, so that was kind of neat. Only complaint is that the theatre got soooo hot that we almost left. Same thing happened when we saw the Headliner, Tony Tillman, a few nights later (he was great too--we didn't have tickets, but did SRO). It was really hot!

 

Monday Labadee. We sat at Nettie's Beach and it was wonderful. I bought something at straw market and had my obligatory Labadoozie. We went back to ship around noon, and it was nice that so many dining options were open---the beach bbq was not the only option. Sorrento's for dinner. We actually found the pizza there to be very good. We got a "make your own" on the last night and it was really good!

 

When we were leaving Labadee, there was a medevac situation and a helicopter had to land on the pier to take a passenger to a "nearby hospital" (according to CD Ken Rush). I'm not sure what the situation was, but I'm wondering what hospital the person would go to. I hope they are ok.

 

Tuesday Sea day. We were very lazy and I can't remember doing much of anything! I think we ate and drank and read and did a lot of nothing. Sorry! Oh, the winds were really high at one point (about 50mph) and the seas were very high. Huge whitecaps.

 

Wednesday/Formal #2 Raining when we woke up and rain for the rest of the day in Costa Maya. Ken Rush and his staff set up extra ship activities, and several excursions were cancelled, but a lot of people seemed to get off the ship. A Pullmantur ship was in port and seemed like a person's tiny yacht in comparison. We walked around a little and got some chips and guac and drinks at Mamasita's. We watched some really drunk people in the pool act like fools, then headed back onto the ship. I wish it had been a nice day, but we weren't deterred.

 

I felt bad for the people dressed up for the second formal night, since the Boardwalk and Central Park aren't covered and people got drenched. I know that's kind of the point of Central Park and the Boardwalk, but when two of your key areas aren't really accessible when it's raining, that's kind of a problem.

 

Thursdayl Beautiful day in Cozumel made up for Costa Maya. We had first planned to go to Nachi Cocum for a beach day, but BF decided he wanted to go deep sea fishing. So...thanks to the recommendation of CC folks, we found a place, and went fishing. BF caught a 50 pound mahi mahi and it was really cool. I'm so glad we did it.

We caught a cab back and were in there with 2 ladies who were on the Carnival Elation. It apparently leaves every week from Mobile, AL. They seemed to be having fun, but I don't think I would enjoy it...No balconies! :eek:

 

We were so wiped out after the fishing that we just headed back to the ship. The line for security was "long," so we had to wait about 10 minutes. People were having water bottles taken if they were holding them out, but seemed to get them through if they were in their bags.

 

We went to Johnny Rockets for dinner that night, which is always fun. Great service as usual. Wish we had tried breakfast there.

 

Friday Final day at sea. We decided to use our casino coupons and ended up winning enough money to pass off our seapass account with some left over! If you play slots, make sure to put your seapass card in the machine each time so you can rack up points to get keychains and t-shirts and stuff. :)

 

Used up some other coupons, and just enjoyed our last day of vacation together. We also tried to hit all the dining venues we needed to go to. So we had a donut from the donut shop (same as from the WJ, so nothing special), and had a cupcake from the cupcake shop (red velvet--really good--would probably get more next time).

 

Saturday I'm not sure what time we docked, but I'm guessing it was around 1am or so. I woke up around 6:30 and got breakfast at the Park Cafe. We carried off our own bags at 8:15 and were at taxi stand at 8:30. Taxi stand was not well thought out and people were just pushing each other, but it was fine. We got to FLL at 8:45. Flight was at 1:15, and turns out they are very strict about the 2 hour before your flight thing. If you don't have to be at the airport until 2 hours before your flight, don't go there. It's a zoo. Waiting downstairs was fine--there is free WiFi at least--so I caught up on Facebook. :)

 

So now I'm home, and sad that I'm not in the Schooner Bar or Globe & Atlas listening to the bagpiper. Again, not an exciting review, I know, but just my observations. Below I'm just going to list my likes and dislikes, and know that the "dislikes" were pretty minor. The ship was amazing, it was a great week, and I hope I get to go again. I was pretty "anti" Oasis, but I'm going to have a hard time going back to a smaller ship. Please let me know if you have any questions. (And yes, the compass for this week was basically the same as the one posted for 2 weeks ago. My scanner isn't working, but if you have specific questions, I can try to answer).

 

Likes

--embarkation and disembarkation, in FLL and at piers: very easy and quick

--dining options: so nice to have so many places to eat; not only that, but overall, the food was really good. We didn't do any of the specialty restaurants, only because we were pretty lazy, but they looked really good. Our favorites were the brownies and cookies in the Cafe Promenade, everything in the Park Cafe (great breakfast!), and most of the things we had in the WJ.

--crew: Clearly they picked the best of the best. Our cabin steward, was the best we've ever had. I could write a whole review about her. The Guest Services staff was helpful, the waiters everywhere were great. I was really impressed.

--touch screens: very helpful to see what restaurants were full, what was going on at that time, how to get around, etc. Great idea!

--entertainment: We're not usually entertainment people, but Hairspray and Tony Tillman were great. We even watched the water show at the Aqua Theater. The bagpiper was really good, and we loved the dedicated Jazz on 4 lounge.

 

Dislikes (again, pretty minor!)

--MDR: very disappointing. Only went first night. Food is just kind of blah. Been there, done that.

--WJ: Great food, but bad set up and not enough seating. Also, one night they blocked off one side for a "private event" but we never saw anyone in there.

--Zipline: No reservations. Everytime I wanted to go, line was long. I'm just impatient, and would've loved to have had the chance to make reservation. Also, the process was unclear.

--Cabin: As mentioned, the shelf in the shower, and I miss the bedside tables. It would be great if there were loungers on the balcony, but that's just a dream, not a dislike.

--CD: I tried to like Ken Rush this time, but I couldn't. He looked bored at some things, like he was just going through the motions. Even BF, who never notices, was like "what's up with this guy?" He likes to hear himself talk, but that's about it. And on the last night, he signed off over the ship's PA with "May God bless each and every one of you" when wishing us safe travels home. To me, that's something the President of the United States says, not a Cruise Director to a ship of 6000 diverse passengers. I wasn't offended, but just found it odd.

 

I think that's it for now. I may think of other things. I will say that each time I went to guest services (4 times?) someone was up there complaining about the WOW phones (or whatever they are called). But other people seemed to like them.

 

Again, it was amazing and I'm so glad we did it. I hope everyone else enjoyed their trip as much as we did!

 

 

Thank you. My dh is looking for an outfit to go fishing with in Cozumel. Can you give me the name of the folks you went with?

[Langley Cruisers]

I guess what I'm really asking is there anyone out there who's saying to themselves "glad i tried that boat, it was great.. but I think next time I'll go back to the Freedom class.."?

 

Stags14, I am saying that. :) DH loved Oasis and would go back in a heartbeat; I found it far too large and too much "inside" the ship.

 

Here is a link to the mini-review I did - post #2 is mine.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1203867

[Janespup]

I have to ask about the "coupons" you spoke of. Did you get them from a TA? Or does everyone get them? I never heard them mentioned before.

And how did you like the slots on Oasis? Did they seem to be set pretty fairly? Thanks.

[sandgrace]

The whole flight thing home has me worried...has anyone traveled on US Airways out of FLL? Our flight doesn't leave until 5:20pm! What will we do????

[bluegirlum]

Ok, lots of things to respond to, so hopefully I can remember everything!

 

1. I have the compasses, but scanner isn't working. If you have a specific question, I'm happy to answer while I'm trying to get scanner to work.

 

2. Fishing: Tres Hermanos (cozumelfishing.com). They were great! I got their name from the Cozumel board here on CC.

 

3. Flights: We were on coach on Delta, so I think that's why we had the issue. There was a sign at the entrance to the "ropes" and both the agents were very strict about letting people in. I wouldn't worry too much. I would e-mail your airline if you're worried about it.

 

4. Liberty vs. Oasis? Not sure. We love Liberty. Love it. And I think it's the ideal size. I love all the options on Oasis, but it is a bit large and I certainly didn't need or see or use all of it. I'd probably pick Liberty if all things were equal.

 

5. Coupons: If you are a member of the Crown & Anchor Society, which you can join after your first cruise, you get a coupon book in your room with various discounts. As you go up from Gold to Platinum to Diamond (depending on number of cruise credits) the coupons get better.

 

6. Casino: I really don't know much about casinos. I'm the worst gambler--once I win a little I stop! But I did notice that I won much more on the smoking side. I don't smoke, but BF does. Of course, I have no scientific proof of this! I had read before that the slots were "tight" (is that the right word?), and I think that's probably accurate. BF won his money playing black jack. I won probably $70 total on slots.

 

Did I forget anything? I'm really having cruise withdrawal! 90 degrees in WI is not the same as 90 degrees on a cruise ship. :(

[janetz]

Thanks so much. Did you do the 3/4 day fishing or the full day? How did you get to the boat and back to the ship? :)

[bluegirlum]

Thanks so much. Did you do the 3/4 day fishing or the full day? How did you get to the boat and back to the ship? :)

 

We went from 9-1 Cozumel Time (10-2 ship time). We took a cab--$10 each way. It's very easy. They had Sol beer, water and Coke. I'm sure if you have any special requests, they'll do it for you.

[cruisingBees]

 

When we were leaving Labadee, there was a medevac situation and a helicopter had to land on the pier to take a passenger to a "nearby hospital" (according to CD Ken Rush). I'm not sure what the situation was, but I'm wondering what hospital the person would go to. I hope they are ok.

 

My wife took a water aerobics class and one of the ladies in the class was the room mate of the person who was Medically Evacuated off the ship. An older woman was leaving the Park Cafe and didn't see the step down and fell, breaking her hip. This happen on the first day. She was stabilized in the Medical Center, with visits from the Captain, and told she need immediate medical attention at a hospital ashore. She was first taken to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and then flown by private jet to a hospital in Ft. Lauderdale where she underwent surgery. The ships Captain made unlimited ships phone service available to the room mate so she could get updates on her status. The injured lady had travel insurance which apparent will cover all the costs. The room mate stayed on board since she had relatives on the cruise with her. According to the room mate, the injured lady was doing just fine and in good spirits despite her ordeal.

[bluegirlum]

 

When we were leaving Labadee, there was a medevac situation and a helicopter had to land on the pier to take a passenger to a "nearby hospital" (according to CD Ken Rush). I'm not sure what the situation was, but I'm wondering what hospital the person would go to. I hope they are ok.

 

My wife took a water aerobics class and one of the ladies in the class was the room mate of the person who was Medically Evacuated off the ship. An older woman was leaving the Park Cafe and didn't see the step down and fell, breaking her hip. This happen on the first day. She was stabilized in the Medical Center, with visits from the Captain, and told she need immediate medical attention at a hospital ashore. She was first taken to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and then flown by private jet to a hospital in Ft. Lauderdale where she underwent surgery. The ships Captain made unlimited ships phone service available to the room mate so she could get updates on her status. The injured lady had travel insurance which apparent will cover all the costs. The room mate stayed on board since she had relatives on the cruise with her. According to the room mate, the injured lady was doing just fine and in good spirits despite her ordeal.

 

I'm glad she's ok. Our neighbors told us it happened in the Solarium (you know how ship gossip goes--they heard it from their neighbors)...I don't normally think it's appropriate to talk about on-board medical issues, but I just thought the medivac process was so interesting. I'm glad she medical insurance--this tale alone is proof of why you should get it. you don't plan to fall and break your hip, but it happens! It's so nice to know that the ship was so accommodating to her friends. Thanks!

[TrishOB]

I'm glad, too, that she will be okay. Now, if you all will excuse me, I'm going to just go add to my cruise notes, "Watch out for step coming out of Park Café"!

[amybeth4]

The whole flight thing home has me worried...has anyone traveled on US Airways out of FLL? Our flight doesn't leave until 5:20pm! What will we do????

 

Do the luggage valet!

[amybeth4]

Hey Blue,

 

Nothing really specific to comment on, but I enjoyed reading your review. I'm glad you cleared up that 2-hour airport thing because I didn't know what you meant. I've never heard of not being allowed to check in before 2 hours. Thank God American's not like that (at least not last year at MIA) because we were at the airport at 8:30 for 12:10 flights.

 

You said you'd go on Allure now, to see the difference in e'tainment. But would you bother going back on Oasis? If a cabin on Oasis was maybe $200 (total) less than one on Liberty, which would you choose? Not that it matters, I'm just curious. I WOULD like to go on Oasis at some point just for the curiosity factor.

 

I agree with you about Ken saying "God bless each and every one of you." I wouldn't be offended, but someone would be and I'd definitely say, "Did he just say that?? Weird!" When you're a cruise director, keep religion and politics out of it. :) I would bet my LIFE that there've been people who ran to guest relations and complained about that comment on a couple of occasions.

 

Hey you should email me your Facebook page...that is...if you WANT to be my friend. :) My email is amybeth4 AOL.

[bluegirlum]

Hey Blue,

 

Nothing really specific to comment on, but I enjoyed reading your review. I'm glad you cleared up that 2-hour airport thing because I didn't know what you meant. I've never heard of not being allowed to check in before 2 hours. Thank God American's not like that (at least not last year at MIA) because we were at the airport at 8:30 for 12:10 flights.

 

You said you'd go on Allure now, to see the difference in e'tainment. But would you bother going back on Oasis? If a cabin on Oasis was maybe $200 (total) less than one on Liberty, which would you choose? Not that it matters, I'm just curious. I WOULD like to go on Oasis at some point just for the curiosity factor.

 

I agree with you about Ken saying "God bless each and every one of you." I wouldn't be offended, but someone would be and I'd definitely say, "Did he just say that?? Weird!" When you're a cruise director, keep religion and politics out of it. :) I would bet my LIFE that there've been people who ran to guest relations and complained about that comment on a couple of occasions.

 

Hey you should email me your Facebook page...that is...if you WANT to be my friend. :) My email is amybeth4 AOL.

 

I just sent you an e-mail. :)

 

I would definitely go back on Oasis. And if everything total (flight, hotel, etc.) was $200 less, I'd probably pick Oasis again simply to save money. I really have no interest in stopping in Jamaica when that starts, but as you know, we're not excursion people, so that's not a deal breaker.

 

But if things were equal I would prefer to leave from Miami, as we like to stay in South Beach and I prefer MIA to FLL, and I think I like Liberty's itineraries better. Also, we dont' need all those specialty restaurants. As long as we have the Cafe Promenade and the WJ and JR, we're fine.

 

I'd like to go on Allure to also see what other dining options they have and just to see what else they thought of. It will take another great deal to get us on there. We can definitely wait!